^{April 2002}

publicity for the show. But show managers need to know about these programs and be willing to ask convention and visitors bureaus what they’re willing to do to make the show feel welcome.

Here are 10 cities that have what it takes when it comes to providing exceptional customer service.

Take the Bus
Chicago traffic at rush hour is a trade show visitor’s nemesis. So, in January, the Metropolitan Pier & Exposition Authority (MPEA), which manages McCormick Place, opened its long-awaited 2 1/2-mile Busway, designed to diminish the time and hassle that was previously required for shuttle buses to navigate from the center to hotels and back again.

Shuttle buses leaving the convention center follow the 7- to 8-minute express route on a two-way road running alongside the Metra/IC railroad tracks through Grant Park, avoiding city traffic, to exit downtown and then move on to hotels. The $43 million project, jointly operated by the MPEA, the city, and Metra commuter railroad, is expected to reduce shuttle bus costs for events by as much as 33 percent.

“No one likes to spend extra time on a bus when they could be on the exhibition floor or in a meeting,” says McCormick Place General Manager Tom Mobley. “That’s why this time-saving busway is such a welcome convenience to our guests.” In January, buses for the three-day International Housewares Show made 600 daily round trips, transporting some 45,000 satisfied passengers.

Life’s a Cab-aret
There’s life after the Olympics, says Salt Lake Convention & Visitors Bureau Director of Convention Services Michael Mack. “Our excellent service makes the difference,” he says. “We want to make groups welcome; we maintain 24-hour contact with them during the shows.”

Services offered to Salt Lake’s largest trade show customer, the Outdoor Retailer Show, which comes to the Salt Palace twice a year with winter and summer markets, included a taxi driver incentive program to encourage the city’s 200-plus drivers to offer unparalleled service to the 24,000 show-goers.

Drivers wore denim caps with show logos and sported show-customized air fresheners on their rearview mirrors.

The reward for becoming Cabdriver of the Day (nominees were recommended by show passengers, who completed a form from the drivers) was a crisp, new $100 bill. The contest ran through set-up, show days and tear-down, so a driver had eight days or chances to win. According to Mack, everyone at the show got in the spirit and had a good time. Of course, cab service was superb.

Street Wise
Baltimore takes a proactive approach to trade shows, says Carroll R. Armstrong, President/CEO of the Baltimore Convention & Visitors Bureau. “We like to create win/win situations. We go the extra mile to show our customers we appreciate their business.” One example: For the past two years, the CVB has picked up the expense to hang welcome banners, like “Baltimore Welcomes ASAE,” in major corridors of the city. “This program educates the community, and it makes show people feel they’ve made the right choice,” he says.

In Harbor Place and Pratt Street, in particular, CVB-designed banners extend welcomes. When show managers have their own banners, city banners complement them, and vice versa.

Similarly designed signs hang in the windows of CVB-member businesses. Armstrong recalls that the Rite Aid show came to town in July the year before initiation of the banner/sign program; one year later, returning attendees who saw the new welcome sign at nearby Jos. A. Banks Clothiers responded by doubling Banks’ sales during that time period.

Roll ’em
At New York City’s Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, a unique MediaOnDemand.com (MOD) facility gives shows access to a broadcast studio for taping keynotes or making exhibitor videos. The on-site studio, control room and editing facilities are used for many purposes, including satellite media tours. The TV/Web setup, with a floor-to-ceiling window, overlooks Javits’ huge 3E exhibit hall.

“Organizers can take advantage of MOD’s services in a professional studio within the center,” says Mike Eisgrau, Javits’ Director of Public Relations. “Our trade show organizers and associations are delighted with the convenience and professional service.”

Exhibitors, such as those at PC Expo/TechXNY, may shoot video of a product or service in their booths. Pictures and interviews can be edited into two- or three-minute packages. Through fiber-optic connections to a hub in mid-Manhattan, they can go out through satellite transmission worldwide. This can also be done live.

In addition, a short video can be digitized to place on a Web site, so people not attending the event can view a product on demand.

Where’s Mickey?
For California’s Anaheim/Orange County Convention Center, having Disneyland Resort right next door is a definite plus, says Elaine Cali, Director of Communications for the Anaheim/Orange County Visitors and Convention Bureau. This proximity lets the center offer packages with themes, like Adventureland, Haunted Mansion and Evening of Animation that can be custom-designed to group budgets for show organizers or exhibitors.

In addition, convention center employees staff kiosks on behalf of Disneyland where exhibitors and attendees can arrange group dinner packages during trade shows. Attendees at the National Association for the Education of Young Children meeting took advantage of a recently piloted package, Disney’s California Adventure, to enjoy dinner at one of Disneyland’s restaurants, such as Golden Vine Winery or ABC Soap Opera Bistro, and reservations to a musical celebration from Broadway’s Tony-award winning “BLAST!”

As an added benefit, show exhibitors and attendees can also buy group-specific Twilight Tickets to the Park (after 4 p.m.) at the convention center.

The Big Picture
Cleveland looks at graphics in a big way – with billboards. When MAX International Expo, the first combined effort of the American Welding Society and the Precision Metalforming Association, came to Cleveland’s International Exposition (I-X) Center last year, the Convention & Visitors Bureau of Greater Cleveland made sure no detail was left unchecked.

The CVB provided 11 billboards scattered throughout the city to announce the largest trade show to visit the state of Ohio. Most were designed to inform Cleveland residents about the giant event; however, one billboard at Hopkins Airport held a message of greeting to the 1,000 exhibitors and 28,000 attendees, who were also met and greeted at the airport by shifts of enthusiastic volunteers.

According to Sharon Gronowski, CMP, Director of Convention Services, “We control one billboard at the airport, which can be used to welcome all visitors to Cleveland. And greetings can be personalized for specific groups, such as the one we made for MAX International.”

Hang Ups
The Georgia World Congress Center (GWCC) has a few hang ups, but not the psychological kind. Instead, banners of all sizes and shapes can be hung in concourse hallways, meeting rooms, and the ballroom and on the convention center exterior – free to the show manager. Show management chooses who gets what space and how much they pay, and they can use any profits toward other aspects of the show. “We do this free of charge. We feel the space our customers rent is theirs to use however they wish,” says GWCC Public Relations Specialist Billy Auer.

GWCC lets show management, including mega-clients such as Supercomm, decide whether or not to sell advertisements on banners. Not all shows opt to sell advertising. And GWCC doesn’t take part in producing the banners; most exhibitors take advantage of graphic companies to produce them.



Press Here
“We work six months out, right through the post-show period, to assist shows with local and national media contact,” says Joe Boyd, Director of Public Relations at Orlando’s Orange County Convention Center. “We have a client advisory board of about 34 representatives from shows of all sizes.” Center staff contacts local stations and print media and trade press about upcoming shows, calling sought-after publications, such as USA Today. Boyd says he inherited a communications contract with two PR agencies that has assisted the center and let staff use their contacts.

The process usually involves a pre-show press release on behalf of the organizer, distributed on center letterhead, an on-site advisory and post-show follow-up. The center coordinates with show media programs, and plans are promoted to organizers at site visits. “Their eyes light up,” says Boyd. “We absolutely will continue this service; 25 organizers have used it already, including the PGA (Professional Golf Association) Merchandise Show, and they were extremely happy with the extended press coverage.”

The Low-rent District
To attract shows during the hotter months of the year, the Greater Phoenix Convention & Visitors Bureau gives organizers who book shows at the Phoenix Civic Plaza from late May through early September during 2003-2005 a 50 percent discount on the rental fee, plus a complimentary two-hour welcome reception with open bar, special VIP upgrades/services and $1,000 toward graphics packages. In addition, bookings for the remainder of 2003-2005 receive guaranteed 2002 rates (until Dec. 3, 2002).

Following the success of a similar program for 2001-2002, the CVB is again partnering with nearby hotels to offer the reception and upgrades. Hotels will sponsor a total of 10 complimentary VIP “Meet & Greets.” Qualifications include a minimum number of peak-night rooms. Additionally, organizers using Brede Expo Services or GES Expo Services receive $1,000 from the respective companies toward graphic requirements.
“Customer response has been amazing,” says Scott White, Director of Marketing for the Greater Phoenix CVB. “It’s been going very, very well. There have been bookings of seven programs worth more than 40,000 room nights.”

Breakfast — Over Easy
“We ask what’s important to each group we serve,” says Mark Theis, Vice President, Convention Division at San Francisco’s Convention & Visitors Bureau. “We want customers to feel pampered. A new Customer Advisory Council, advocates who identify the desires of their colleagues (13 representatives from key association accounts for San Francisco), helps us; they’re sort of designated ambassadors.”

One successful idea the council suggested to the bureau at one of its semi-annual meetings was establishing a pre- or post-show breakfast for local host committees, like the American Dental Association or American Bar Association. Breakfasts are hosted for five to 20 invited guests at one of the convention hotels or at Moscone Center.
A city information table is available, and the focus is, “Let’s get your staff together and rally excitement as a collective team for a successful show,” or, for “post-con” gatherings, “Thank you for your business; how can we serve you even better next time?” and also to find out how the show went.

“Our shows like it,” says Theis. “These days, all bureaus are forced to make sure the proverbial red carpet hasn’t faded.”

Barbara Axelson is a Chicago-based freelance writer, seminar speaker, and trade show consultant. She was formerly an editor with Cahners Publishing Co. and later directed public relations for Reed Exhibition Cos.’ Chicago Division.